Three Keys to the Game

Make at least 10 treys:

The Bruins are fourth in the nation in three-pointers made per game at 10.6. However, Belmont’s bread and butter treys have not been falling for them in the Big Dance. The first two tournament appearances against UCLA and Georgetown, the Bruins made just 10 combined threes out of 45 attempts, which amounts to a paltry 22 percent. Butterflies probably account for the dip in the big games, but this marks the Bruins third consecutive trip. Now, Belmont’s sharpshooters have no excuse this time around to shoot so poorly.

Limit turnovers:

This is really not rocket science. If you are already at a disadvantage in talent, then you can’t afford to shoot yourself in the foot. It helps that the Bruins have loads of experienced ball handlers in senior Justin Hare and juniors Alex Renfroe and Andy Wicke. However, neither one has seen a defender as tough as Duke junior guard Greg Paulus.

Hold their own in rebounding:

Nobody is asking the undersized Bruins to outmuscle the Blue Devils. But, the Blue Devils are not that great of rebounding team themselves. So, in order to pull the upset, Belmont needs to keep their rebounding statistics in line with Duke’s.